clique

Where does the word "clique" come from? It comes from Old French cliquer, passing through French before entering English (1711).

Clique’s story begins in Old French: cliquer meant “to click, clatter, crackle.” An echoic coinage imitating a sharp clicking or clattering sound. By 1300s, the word had taken hold in French as clique. The noise-word narrowed to name a door latch and, by association, a tight little group of people. It reached English by 1711 as clique. Borrowed for an exclusive, self-interested social set. Today, clique means a small, exclusive group of people who share interests and exclude outsiders.

1. Stage 1 · Old French · 1200s cliquer "to click, clatter, crackle", an echoic coinage imitating a sharp clicking or clattering sound.
2. Stage 2 · French · 1300s clique "a sharp noise; a latch or bolt", the noise-word narrowed to name a door latch and, by association, a tight little group of people.
3. Stage 3 · English · 1711 clique "an exclusive party of persons", borrowed for an exclusive, self-interested social set.